Total Body Warm Up Routine:
Quick, Easy, and Effective
When you think of a warm up routine, you might remember back to grade school PE class: a half hour or so of exercises like jumping jacks, toe touches, and windmills, all while wearing uncomfotable gym shorts and trying to block out the gym teacher’s random whistling.
There’s nothing wrong with that sort of thing, but here is a warm up routine with exercises that will get all your key muscle groups ready to workout, in around five minutes.
Total Body Warm Up Routine
Here is the sequence of exercises:
The shoulder rehab exercises should take you around two minutes.
Then do the following series of exercises, which shouldn’t take more than two or three minutes:
- Half Bridges x 10
- Pushups x 10
- Good Mornings x 10
- Bodyweight Squats x 10
- Dynamic Hip Warm Up x 10 on each leg
Click on the exercise or scroll down for more details.
Half Bridges
After completing the two minute shoulder rehab exercises circuit, lie on your back with your feet flat on the ground, as shown.
You can clasp your hands behind your back, pinching the shoulder blades back and down, stretching the front of the shoulders.
Press your body up through your heels by flexing your glutes and lower back muscles.
You should feel a nice opening in the front of your hips, while your lower back and glutes get warmed up and activated.
Hold this top position for about a second, then smoothly return to the start.
Repeat ten times.
Pushups
Get into ‘pushup position,’ with your hands about shoulder width apart, even with your chest.
Keep your body as straight as possible, with core and leg muscles flexed for support.
Keeping your shoulders down (don’t let them come up by your ears) and your elbows near your sides, slowly descend to the ground.
Have your face, chest, and stomach all arrive the same time, just barely touching the ground. Briefly hold here.
Push back to start.
Modified Pushups
If you are in the process of building up strength for standard pushups, or are recovering from a shoulder injury, go easy on yourself and do these modified pushups instead.
Good Mornings
With your feet around shoulder width apart, keep your legs with just a slight bend away from being completely straight.Keep looking up throughout the exercise.
Bodyweight Squats
The next exercise in this warm up routine is a set of ten bodyweight squats (click for more detailed bodyweight squats info).
Dynamic Hip Warm Up
The last exercise in this warm up routine is a dynamic hip warm up.
You should feel a good stretch in the front and back of your hips as you do this.
Each swing, front and back, counts as one repetition.
Now You’re Warmed Up!
Now your muscles are warmed up and ready for your workout.Get to it!